Using an Investor Relations role for IB Internship next year?

Hey guys,

So I'll try to avoid making this TLDR. Currently a sophomore. Didn't manage to find anything in "Investment" fields (Mutual Funds, Boutiques etc). I have this potential opportunity at a relatively big multinational in the Investor Relations department as a summer analyst. During my first round, they mentionned how they recently got a new VP IR and are switching to a more quantitative/data-oriented approach.

Essentially, I'm curious to know how (if) I can leverage/frame this experience to make it relevant for an IBD internship next summer. Are IRs normally looked down upon? Or is the whole "communicating/presenting" side something that could be an interesting experience to have on a resume?

Thanks

6 Comments
 

What is your next best alternative for SA?

If your choice is this SA role vs flipping burgers, take the IR internship.

If you have other choices, you need to tell us what those are so we can help you choose the best.

Those who can, do. Those who can't, post threads about how to do it on WSO.
 

As of now, no other availabilities at all. I messaged one former neighbor who works for the Investment Management branch of an insurance company as a Portfolio manager. He said he would try to help upon initial reach, but still has not answered to my email after the initial reply.

Other option currently on the table is to go back to Asia where my fathers side of the family own a company has a publicly traded company. I could get a job there in the Treasury department, but my feeling is that it will be less structured than staying in North America with actual internship programs.

@trader_timmy -- An IR role at a BB would be ideal. My main issue is that this is with a publicly traded company which is unrelated to financial services (Think Transportation, such as Boeing and those type of companies). The team is small (~4 people), so I would get very close to every member, which would be great, especially considering the new IR VP spent 9 years at interesting investment banks. So that could also be a great contact to have, provided I get the job and prove to be a good worker.

 
Best Response

I would look at it from the perspective of what you could learn. You'd be fielding (or at least sitting in on) calls from an array of sophisticated investors, each prodding for different bits of information about the company. If you can collect enough interesting data points throughout the summer, I think you could have a very compelling story that could be applied to investment banks, hedge funds, PE - really any sort of high finance role. For example, for an ib interview, you learned how to present information to investors in a concise manner that generated interest in your company, which is a huge part of sell-side M&A work.

As someone who picks resumes based on how interested I am in talking with that individual for 30 minutes, I can definitely confirm a summer in IR will get you looks. I wouldn't take it over direct IB experience, but this is still a solid sophomore summer gig.

 

Est rerum molestias ab aut aut ea sed ut. Sed vero ullam quia tempora. Id corrupti fuga non sit.

Dolores inventore non quam. Velit voluptatem et libero odit. Assumenda repellendus sed recusandae dolores saepe distinctio dicta. Nisi ratione nobis minima dolores. Sunt suscipit recusandae perspiciatis eos excepturi sunt consequatur.

Sit quia molestiae atque. Voluptatem ut quidem provident. Doloremque cupiditate inventore quam. Ad porro quisquam commodi porro fugit officia. Possimus odio voluptates et suscipit qui.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.3%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.7%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.3%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (44) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (78) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
7
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
8
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”